Apparatus for delivering a gas into the lungs of a patient

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to an apparatus for delivering a gas into the lungs of a patient. The apparatus comprises a neck support and the patient&#39;&#39;s head is held in the extended position by means of straps which are attached to the neck support. The straps are conveniently used to secure the mouthpiece over the patient&#39;&#39;s nose and mouth. In an embodiment particularly suitable for rescue work a gas (oxygen) cylinder is used as the neck support.

United States Patent Bertram William Duck Pyrtortl, Working, Surrey;

Charles Eslne Thornton Warren, Hollinboume, Kent, both of, England [21 I Appl. No. 797,043

[72] Inventors [22] Filed Feb. 6, 1969 [45] Patented July 27, 1971 [73] Assignees The B ritish Petroleum Company London, England; Electronic Pneumatic Automation Company Limited Kent, England [32] Priority Feb. 15, 1968 [33] Great Britain [54] APPARATUS FOR DELIVERING A GAS INTO THE;

LUNGS OF A PATIENT 1 5 Claims, 4 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.Cl.....; 128/145.8

[51] lnt.Cl A62b7/02 [50] Field of Search 128/1458, 145.7,145.6,145.5,145,142,140,141,142.2, 142.3, 142.4, 142.5; 9/333, 336, 337, 329

1 5 6 References Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS 968,232 8/1910 Bentz 128/142 2,400,146 5/1946 Hobson eta1..... 128/1426 2,418,034 3/1947 Kizaur'fi i 128/142, 3,195,538 7/1965 Galeazzi 128/1422 Primary ExaminerRichard A. Gaudet Assistant Examiner-G. F. Dunne Attorney-Morgan, Finnegan, Durham & Pine ABSTRACT: This invention relates to an apparatus for delivering a gas into the lungs of a patient. The apparatus comprises a neck support and the patients head is held in the extended position by means of straps which are attached to the neck support. The straps are conveniently used to secure the mouthpiece over the patients nose and mouth.

in an embodiment particularly suitable for rescue work a gas (oxygen) cylinder is used as the neck support.

APPARATUS FOR DELIVERING A GAS INTO THE LUNGS OF A PATIENT This invention relates to an apparatus for delivering a gas into the lungs of a patient.

According to the invention an apparatus for delivering a gas into the lungs of a patient comprises a neck support to which straps are attached in such a manner that when, in the use of the apparatus, the neck support has been placed behind the patients neck and the head straps secured to the patients head the tension in the straps maintains the head and neck in the extended position so as to maintain an open airway into the lungs.

Conveniently at least some, preferably all, the straps are adapted to be attached to the face mask which is used to administer the gas to the patient while the apparatus is in use.

The apparatus according to the invention may be used in hospitals, eg for giving an anesthetic, but certain embodiments, hereinafter called rescue kits, are particularly suitable for use in rescue operations where it is desired to administer oxygen to a patient who is suffering from a respirato ry insufficiency. As examples we quote the rescue of persons from confined spaces where the atmosphere may be deficient in oxygen and/or contain-toxic gases, e.g. the rescue of miners and the rescue of sailors from the pump rooms or cargo tanks of a tankship.

(It is sometimes necessary for a sailor to enter a cargo tank of a tankship in order to carry out various cleaning or maintenance operations. Even though the tank contains no cargo the atmosphere in the tank is often deficient in oxygen and it often contains toxic petroleum vapors. Therefore,.before a sailor enters the tank, air is blown into it until the dangerous atmosphere is replaced by normal air. Occasionally the change is incomplete and a sailor is overcome by the dangerous atmosphere remaining in the tank.)

Thus there are circumstances in which it is necessary to recover a victim suffering from a respiratory insufficiency from a location to which there is only restricted access. In these circumstances it may be impossible for a rescuer to remain in close attendance upon the victim and it is therefore desirable to have available a rescue kit which is light in weight, easily movable, and which will operate unattended. A rescue kit according to the invention displays all these features.

A rescue kit according to the invention comprises a holder for holding a source of respirable gas and a control unit whose inlet is suitable for connection to a source of respirable gas and whose outlet is adapted for connection to a face mask, characterized in that straps are attached to the holder in such a manner that when, in the use of the rescue kit, a source of respirable gas has been placed in the holder, connected to the inlet of the control unit and the holder placed behind the victims neck with the straps attached to the victim's head the 'tension in the straps maintains the head and neck in the extended position so as to maintain an open airway into the lungs whereby the victim receives the respirable gas under the control of the control unit via a face mask held over his nose and/or mouth and connected to the outlet of the control unit.

Conveniently at least some, preferably all, the straps are adapted to be attached to the face mask which is used to administer the gas to the victim while the rescue kit is in use.

The control unit may be a pressure-reducing valve which provides a constant supply of oxygen at slightly above atmospheric pressure to the patient. This arrangement is suitable for isolating a victim who is still breathing from a dangerous atmosphere. It is, however, preferred that the control unit be an IPP resuscitator which can maintain artificial respiration for a victim who has stopped breathing. (A particularly suitable IPP resuscitator is described in British Pat. application No. 53251/66.)

Since only a relatively small source of respirable gas can be located behind the neck it is desirable that the kit shall include two sources when it is in use. Therefore, according to a preferred embodiment, a rescue kit according to the invention comprises a second holder for holding a second source of respirable gas and the control unit has a second inlet adapted, during the use of the kit to connect it to the second source. The second holder is positioned so that, while the victim is lying on his back the second holder rests on the abdomen so that the weight of the second source which, during the use of the kit, is positioned in the second holder helps to prevent oxygen passing down the esophagus.

Suitable respirable gases include oxygen, air and oxygen-enriched air as well mixtures of these with carbon dioxide. For special purposes other mixtures, e.g. oxygen/helium mixtures, may be used. Preferably the source is a bottle which contains the respirable gas under a high pressure although sources which generate the gas by a chemical reaction may be used.

Preferably the holder for the source of respirable gas, or

each of the two holders where there are two sources, is a sleeve which is formed so that it can contain and hold a cylinder of respirable gas.

The rescue kit will normally be sold without the sources of respirable gas or face mask since these are disposable and they may be acquired separately.

A rescue kit according to the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows, in diagrammatic form, the oxygen supply lines, 7

FIG. 2 shows, in diagrammatic form, the layout of the kit,

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic side view showing the kit in use on a victim lying on his back, and

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic side view showing the kit in use on a victim who is in a vertical position for lifting.

The oxygen arrangement shown in FIG. 1 comprises oxygen cylinders I0 and 11 which are connected via pressure-reducing valves 12 and 13 and nonretum valves 14 and 15 to a control unit 16. (Note that the rescue kit will normally be sold without the oxygen cylinders.)

The pressure-reducing valve 12 is set to a higher pressure than the pressure-reducing valve 13 so that there is a tendency for the oxygen to flow the wrong way through the nonretum valve 15. The nonretum valve 15 will not allow this flow to take place so it prevents any flow of oxygen from the cylinder 11 until the cylinder 10 is exhausted. This gives an economy in the use of oxygen cylinders-if the kit is in use for such a short time that only one cylinder is partially used. The nonretum valves 14 and 15 also enable an empty cylinder to be disconnected leaving the apparatus to function satisfactorily on the other cylinder while a new (full) cylinder is attached. This enables the rescue kit to be used for periods of time longer than the capacity of the two cylinders.

(When the victim has been removed to a safe location it is desirable to disconnect the gas supply line from the face mask and, if necessary, continue artificial respiration by the mouthto-mouth method via the face mask. If the victim has been moved to a location where a respirable gas is available on line the oxygen cylinders can be disconnected and the control unit connected to the line.")

The control unit 16 is an IPP resuscitator as described in copending British Pat. application No. 53251/66. This resuscitator has the property of delivering a predetermined volume of oxygen into the lungs of a patient at fixed intervals at a pressure slightly above atmospheric. During the intervals between the high-pressure phase it relaxes the pressure to atmospheric. This apparatus is powered by the pressure in the cylinders and it is capable of maintaining artificial respiration for a victim who has ceased to breathe naturally.

This resuscitator has a fail-safe property in that it allows a victim to breathe the external air if both oxygen cylinders become exhausted towards the end of a long rescue. If a rescue takes so long that both cylinders becomeexhausted it is most probable that the patient will be capable of breathing naturally and he will be in an atmosphere suitable for breathing by this time. Without the fail-safe device just mentioned it might be possible for a patient to be suffocated by the face mask when he could breathe naturally.

The arrangement of the rescue kit is shown in FIG. 2 and it comprises sleeves 20 and 21 into which oxygen cylinders may be inserted. The two sleeves are joined together by webs 22 and 23. The web 22 carries the pressure-reducing valves 12 and 13 the nonreturn valves 14 and 15 and the control unit 16 which are described in FIG. 1. The web 23 is provided with a pocket 24 in which a face mask can be stored while the rescue kit is not in use.

Straps 25, 26 and 27 are connected onto the sleeve and these are used to hold the face mask over a victim's nose and/or mouth during use. The tension in these straps maintains the victims head and neck in the extended position so as to maintain an open airway into the lungs.

FIG. 3 illustrates the use of the survival kit shown in FIG. 2 on a victim who is horizontal on his back. The sleeve 20 (which contains an oxygen cylinder during use) is positioned under the patients neck and the strap 26 passes over the top of his head and is attached to the face mask 28 and the tension in this strap maintains the head and neck in the extended position so as to maintain an open airway. The mask is also held in position by the straps and 27 which pass across the side of the face. (Strap 25 is not visible in FIG. 3).

FIG. 3 also shows that the sleeve 21 (which contains an oxygen cylinder during use) is positioned on the patients abdomen and this helps to prevent oxygen passing down the esophagus.

FIG. 4 shows the position of a victim who is in a vertical attitude during lifting e.g. from a cargo tank ofa tankship.

During lifting the patient tends to slope slightly backwards so that the sleeve 20 and the oxygen cylinder contained therein tends to swing away from the victims neck thereby holding the head and neck in the extended position required to provide an open airway to the lungs. This also holds the face mask firmly over the nose and mouth.

It is pointed out that it is necessary to hold the mask firmly over the nose and mouth of the victim since the apparatus works at pressures slightly above atmospheric and it is therefore necessary to prevent the escape of oxygen. This feature also helps to isolate the victim from a dangerous atmosphere. (If the mask covers only one, either the nose or mouth, the other must be sealed.)

The oxygen cylinders mentioned in the above description may be replaced by bottles containing other respirable gases under pressure, e.g. they may contain air, air enriched with oxygen or mixtures of these with carbon dioxide. Other possibilities, for use under special conditions, include helium/oxygen mixtures. As an alternative to bottles containing a gas under pressure a device which produces a respirable gas by means of a chemical reaction may be used.

We claim:

1. A rescue kit for administering a respirable gas to a patient suffering from a respiratory insufficicncy, which kit comprises:

a. a harness structure having a holder for holding a source of respirable gas in position behind the patients neck to provide a neck support:

b. a face mask having an inlet for receiving respirable gas from said source;

c. head straps connected to the face mask and said holder for securing said face mask to at least a portion of the pa tient's face, at least one of said straps being so disposed between said holder and said face mask in the secured position of said face mask as to hold the patients head and neck in an extended position serving to maintain an open airway from said face mask into the patients lungs; and,

d. a control unit carried by said harness structure for controlling the flow of respirable gas from said source to said face mask, said control unit having an inlet including means to connect said control unit to said source during the use of the kit and an outlet includin means to connect said control unit to the inlet of said ace mask during the use of the kit, whereby, in the use of said rescue kit, tension in said straps maintains the patients head and neck in the extended position and the patient receives respirable gas from said source via said face mask through said open airway under the control of said unit.

2. A rescue kit according to claim 1, in which the holder is a sleeve which is formed so that it can contain and hold a cylinder of respirable gas.

3. A rescue kit according to claim 1, in which the control unit includes means to deliver a predetermined volume of oxygen through said outlet into the face mask at fixed intervals at a pressure slightly above atmospheric thereby maintaining artificial respiration for a victim who has stopped breathing.

4. A rescue kit according to claim 1, in which said harness structure also has a second holder for holding a second source of respirable gas and the control unit has a second inlet including means to connect said control unit to said second source of respirable gas during the use of the kit.

5. A rescue kit according to claim 4, in which each holder is a sleeve which is formed so that it can contain and hold a cylinder of respirable gas.

@2 3 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent NO. Dated 27,

Inventor(s) Bertram William Duck et al It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

In the heading, page 1, under '[73] Assignees", "The British Petroleum Company" should read The British Petroleum Company Limited Siamed and sealed this 26th day of March 1 972.

( SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. ROBERT GOTTSCHALK Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents 

1. A rescue kit for administering a respirable gas to a patient suffering from a respiratory insufficiency, which kit comprises: a. a harness structure having a holder for holding a source of respirable gas in position behind the patient''s neck to provide a neck support: b. a face mask having an inlet for receiving respirable gas from said source; c. head straps connected to the face mask and said holder for securing said face mask to at least a portion of the patient''s face, at least one of said straps being so disposed between said holder and said face mask in the secured position of said face mask as to hold the patient''s head and neck in an extended position serving to maintain an open airway from said face mask into the patient''s lungs; and, d. a control unit carried by said harness structure for controlling the flow of respirable gas from said source to said face mask, said control unit having an inlet including means to connect said control unit to said source during the use of the kit and an outlet including means to connect said control unit to the inlet of said face mask during the use of the kit, whereby, in the use of said rescue kit, tension in said straps maintains the patient''s head and neck in the extended position and the patient receives respirable gas from said source via said face mask through said open airway under the control of said unit.
 2. A rescue kit according to claim 1, in which the holder is a sleeve which is formed so that it can contain and hold a cylinder of respirable gas.
 3. A rescue kit according to claim 1, in which the control unit includes means to deliver a predetermined volume of oxygen through said outlet into the face mask at fixed intervals at a pressure slightly above atmospheric thereby maintaining artificial respiration for a victim who has stopped breathing.
 4. A rescue kit according to claim 1, in which said harness structure also has a second holder for holding a second source of respirable gas and the control unit has a second inlet including means to connect said control unit to said second source of respirable gas during the use of the kit.
 5. A rescue kit according to claim 4, in which each holder is a sleeve which is formed so that it can contain and hold a cylinder of respirable gas. 